Verstappen was on course for pole position at the new Jeddah circuit with a super-fast final lap in Q3 that seemed to put him ahead of Lewis Hamilton.
However, he made a small mistake under braking for the last hairpin, locked up and went a bit wide before hitting the wall on the exit of that corner.
That impact against the concrete barrier, where the right rear end hit the guards sideways, is the kind of accident that can lead to serious gearbox damage.
Red Bull still doesn’t know if Max Verstappen’s gearbox was left unscathed or not, but they are clear that if there is even the slightest risk of it being damaged, they will decide to replace it, which would mean a penalty of five grid positions.
Speaking about what Red Bull thinks about it, Helmut Marko told Servus TV : “We have to take it apart and check it.”
“We already saw it with Leclerc in Monte Carlo. It had a similar impact, they decided not to change it and then on the warm-up lap the consequences came out and he couldn’t even start the race.
“We’re so quick that we won’t take any chances. If the gearbox is damaged or there are signs of something, then we’ll change it. It’s hard to overtake here, but still, we’ll do it.”
While Red Bull were frustrated that Verstappen’s mistake cost him a potentially key pole position and left him third on the grid, Marko said he couldn’t complain about his driver’s aggressive and ambitious style.
“I was four tenths ahead at the time, which is an eternity here,” he analyzed.
“We saw that when he braked, the left front wheel locked up. As a result, he no longer had grip and then he skidded out. That’s what happened.”
“In hindsight you could have said: ‘Okay, Max, you’re already far ahead, take it easy’, but that’s not Max, that’s not us. When someone is on a lap like that… and it was just nuances.” .
“It was a matter of hundredths under braking, and it had a very stupid effect.”
Photo by: Charles Coates/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Charles Coates/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Charles Coates/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Charles Coates/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Charles Coates/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Charles Coates/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Charles Coates/Motorsport Images
Photo By: Andy Hone/Motorsport Images
Photo By: Andy Hone/Motorsport Images
Photo By: Andy Hone/Motorsport Images
Photo By: Andy Hone/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Simon Galloway/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Simon Galloway/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Simon Galloway/Motorsport Images
Foto de: Charles Coates / Motorsport Images
Foto de: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
Foto de: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
